Citigroup Initiates Coverage on GATX (NYSE:GATX)

Key Points

• Citigroup has upgraded GATX to a "strong-buy" rating, reflecting positive market sentiment for the transportation company.
• The current consensus price target for GATX is $183.50, with recent trading activity showing a 2.5% increase in share price to $176.41.
• Institutional investors own 93.14% of GATX's stock, indicating strong institutional backing and interest in the company.

Analysts at Citigroup started coverage on shares of GATX (NYSE:GATX - Get Free Report) in a research note issued to investors on Monday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm set a "buy" rating and a $201.00 price target on the transportation company's stock. Citigroup's price target would suggest a potential upside of 13.94% from the stock's current price.

Separately, Susquehanna set a $190.00 price target on shares of GATX and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a report on Monday, August 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, GATX presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $183.50.

GATX Stock Performance

Shares of GATX opened at $176.41 on Monday. GATX has a one year low of $127.69 and a one year high of $177.71. The company has a 50-day moving average of $160.87 and a two-hundred day moving average of $154.80. The stock has a market cap of $6.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.18 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27, a current ratio of 2.93 and a quick ratio of 2.93.

GATX (NYSE:GATX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The transportation company reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $430.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $425.52 million. GATX had a net margin of 19.13% and a return on equity of 12.52%. GATX has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.500-8.900 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that GATX will post 8.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at GATX

In other GATX news, SVP Kevin Hillesland sold 2,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.59, for a total value of $335,698.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 7,606 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,160,599.54. The trade was a 22.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Geoffrey Phillips sold 2,100 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $168.74, for a total transaction of $354,354.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 6,740 shares in the company, valued at $1,137,307.60. This trade represents a 23.76% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 17,914 shares of company stock worth $2,953,509. Corporate insiders own 2.17% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On GATX

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in shares of GATX by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,219,746 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $187,304,000 after purchasing an additional 6,104 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in GATX by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 924,437 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $141,956,000 after acquiring an additional 21,631 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in GATX by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 879,139 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $135,017,000 after acquiring an additional 6,612 shares during the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. grew its holdings in GATX by 52.7% during the 2nd quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 434,415 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $66,709,000 after acquiring an additional 149,950 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ensign Peak Advisors Inc grew its holdings in GATX by 11.1% during the 2nd quarter. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc now owns 410,550 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $63,044,000 after acquiring an additional 40,915 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.14% of the company's stock.

About GATX

GATX Corporation, together its subsidiaries, operates as railcar leasing company in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Europe, and India. It operates through three segments: Rail North America, Rail International, and Portfolio Management. The company leases tank and freight railcars, and locomotives for petroleum, chemical, food/agriculture, and transportation industries.